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Home / Science / Obama reiterates support for Turkish government, urges rule of law

Obama reiterates support for Turkish government, urges rule of law

Posted on Saturday, July 16, 2016 by Virginia Carson

People place candles during a vigil to remember the victims of the Bastille Day truck attack in Nice

A coup, launched by a faction in Turkey's armed forces, appeared to crumble in the early hours of Saturday after crowds answered President Tayyip Erdogan's call to take to the streets to support him.

He added a total of 161 people had been killed and 1,440 wounded.

An official claims 336 have been arrested in the aftermath. "They will pay a heavy price for this", saidErdogan."This uprising is a gift from God to us because this will be a reason to cleanse our army". A total of 2,839 military officers reportedly have been detained.

More than 1,500 military personnel were arrested across the country, said a senior official who was not authorized to speak to the media.

British Foreign Secretary Boris Johnson said he had spoken to his Turkish counterpart ‪Mevlut Cavusoglu to underline the U.K.'s ‪support for the democratically elected government.

"They won't succeed as long as we stand against them by risking everything".

In images broadcast on CNN-Turk, dozens of soldiers walked among tanks with their hands held up, surrendering to government forces.

In public appearances since returning to Istanbul, Erdogan has blamed the putsch on followers of Pennsylvania-based opposition figure Fethullah Gulen, a Turkish preacher with a large following.

A North Atlantic Treaty Organisation official at alliance headquarters in Brussels told The Associated Press early Saturday that "we're following events closely", but said he had no other comment.

The Grand National Assembly of Turkey convened in an emergency session following the failed coup attempt, as thousands of people chanted outside.

People carry a man shot during clashes with Turkish military at the entrance to the Bosphorus bridge in Istanbul on July 16, 2016.

Huge gunfire and explosions rocked both the main city Istanbul and capital Ankara on Friday night after soldiers took up positions in both cities and ordered state television to read out a statement declaring they had taken power.

Fadi Hakura, a Turkey expert at the Chatham House think tank in London, said it was not clear who was behind the attempted coup, but it appeared to have been "carried out by lower-ranking officers - at the level of colonel".

Additionally, Ankara demands that Greece must extradite eight Turkish soldiers that earlier fled to Alexandroupolis city in a Black Hawk helicopter.

The session started with a moment of silence to honor the ones who were killed by pro-coup soldiers during the attempt.

Almost 200 unarmed soldiers at the Turkish military headquarters have meanwhile surrendered, an official said, adding that special troops were now securing the complex.

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